October 7, 2023
Delta Air Lines has apparently put a new CEO in place at its Delta Private Jets subsidiary, something that was seemingly done without a press release, and marks the second change since June 2017 when then boss David Sneed exited the top spot. We only picked it up when we noticed a new leader being quoted when Delta Private Jets announced its partnership with Madison Square Garden. A quick check of Delta Private Jets’ website shows Jeffrey Mihalic is indeed now listed as president and CEO, but we couldn’t find any press releases about the news.
According to the DPJ website, Mihalic is responsible for overall safety, efficiency, and growth of the wholly-owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, Inc. His responsibilities include financial and operational performance, growing the Delta Private Jets brand, and providing a seamless travel solution for both private aviation consumers as well as commercial customers, transforming the customer service platform.
The new boss joined the parent in 2015 to launch Delta Material Services, a wholly owned subsidiary. Before, he was group senior vice president at Greenwich AeroGroup, which provides MRO and manufacturing services in the corporate and military aviation sectors supporting Boeing, Dassault, Pilatus and Sikorsky. Earlier in his career, he was with Q Aviation, a commercial aircraft leasing business where he oversaw the restructuring of the company following its exit from Chapter 11. He has also held several key executive roles at Bombardier Aerospace.
Mihalic replaces Gary Hames who joined Delta Private Jets in June 2017 after serving as COO of Virgin Australia. Hames LinkedIn profile (below) shows he exited DPJ in September and is now a vice president with Delta Air Lines.
Gary Hames tenure at Delta Private Jets apparently ended in September
Hames replaced David Sneed, a corporate executive who was named COO of DPJ in June 2015. Over the recent several years DPJ moved to work with its aircraft owners to install WiFi across its fleet. It has also launched an empty leg program providing all you can fly empty legs at $8,500 per year, including initiation fees, while at the same time bumping the entry level for its jet card program to $150,000 from $100,000. DPJ members can also get Diamond Status on Delta Air Lines as part of their membership, plus private transfers from and to FBOs to connecting Delta flights. With a fleet of nearly 80 aircraft under management, DPJ is both a major operator and a significant player in the jet card space.
One reader tells us he’s not surprised, and that DPJ has a history of rotating executives through its private jet division.
